It's Official! It's spelled "barbecue," NOT "barbeque"

*Those of you waiting for a proper ruling on whether it’s spelled “barbecue” or “barbeque” can finally exhale. The 2011 edition of the AP Stylebook includes 16 pages of food-related entries for terms like “locavore,” “farmstead” and “blind bake,” as well as the definitive spelling of the term for slowly cooking meat: “barbecue.” And for those keeping track, you don’t need to capitalize “bloody mary” but you should always capitalize “Sloppy Joe.” Whew.
*One of the most impressive ways to dress up a dish (or slyly cover up a bad one) is through the careful addition of a complementary sauce. If your go-to sauces are ketchup, barbecue sauce and ranch dressing, get thee to a bookstore to check out Tony Rosenfeld’s new book, Sear, Sauce and Serve . In it, he tells readers how to do just that — basically prepare items like chicken breasts, steaks and other cuts, then serve them up with a complementary sauce. Whether your tastes run to Asian-style sauces (Spicy Szechuan Garlic and Chili Sauce), classics like barbecue (a peach version is offered here), vinaigrettes that do double duty as salad dressings or if you just want to learn how to make a basic pesto, this is the book for you. Virtually every recipe is well within the capabilities of even the most novice cooks, and Rosenfeld’s well-written directions make the dishes practically foolproof. Yeah, you may have to buy the occasional ingredient like balsamic vinegar or fresh ginger if you don’t have it already, but all the ingredients are easily sourced — you won’t be running all over town to find a vial of elf tears or fresh mandrake root.
*What are the best restaurants in Omaha according to the people who eat there? If the social networking site Yelp is to be believed, it’s Jacobo’s Grocery (many a Yelper has sung the praises of Jacobo’s salsa), Big Mama’s Kitchen, Laos Thai Market, The Boiler Room and Crescent Moon. If you needed a nudge to visit any of these, there’s no time like the present.